Marianna Alcoforado
Encyclopedia
Sóror Mariana Alcoforado (Santa Maria da Feira, Beja, 22 April 1640 - Beja, 28 July 1723), was a Portuguese
nun
, living in the convent of the Poor Ladies (Convento de Nossa Senhora da Conceição) in Beja, Portugal
.
Debate continues as to whether Mariana was the real Portuguese
author of the Letters of a Portuguese Nun
(comprising five letters). Her purported love affair with the French officer Noël Bouton, Marquis de Chamilly and later Marshal of France
, has made Beja famous in (mainly Portuguese and French) literary circles.
Some literary scholars consider the letters a fictional work and their authorship is ascribed to Gabriel-Joseph de La Vergne, comte de Guilleragues (1628–1685), although a real nun named Mariana Alcoforado did exist. In her recent book Letters of a Portuguese Nun: Uncovering the Mystery Behind a Seventeenth-Century Forbidden Love (2006), the author Myriam Cyr has attempted to reassert the attribution of the letters to the real Mariana Alcoforado.
For information about authorship and publication of the letters, see "Letters of a Portuguese Nun
".
Mariana Alcoforado was born in Beja
, daughter of landed proprietor of Alentejo Francisco da Cunha Alcoforado, born at Cortiços, Macedo de Cavaleiros
, and first wife Leonor Mendes. She had three brothers, Baltasar Vaz Alcoforado, Miguel da Cunha Alcoforado and Francisco da Cunha Alcoforado and two sisters Ana Maria da Cunha Alcoforado, wife of Rui de Melo Lobo Freire, and Maria Peregrina Alcoforado. Beja was the chief garrison town of the province and the principal theatre of the twenty-eight years' war with Spain that followed the Portuguese Revolution of 1640
. Mariana's widowed father, occupied with administrative and military commissions, placed her in the wealthy convent of the Conception for security and education. He later remarried and had two more daughters, Maria da Conceição Alcoforado and Catarina Alcoforado, and was also made a Knight
of the Order of Christ
on December 15, 1647.
She made her profession as a Franciscan nun of the Poor Ladies at sixteen or earlier, without any real vocation, and lived a routine life in that somewhat relaxed house until her twenty-fifth year, when she purportedly met the young French nobleman Noël Bouton. This man, afterwards known as marquis de Chamilly, and marshal of France
, was one of the French officers who came to Portugal to serve under the captain, Frederick Schomberg, 1st Duke of Schomberg
, the re-organizer of the Portuguese army, campaigning against the Spanish army in the Alentejo.
During the years 1665-1667 Chamilly spent much of his time in and about Beja, and probably became acquainted with the Alcoforado family through Sóror Mariana's brother, who was a soldier. Custom permitted those in religious orders to receive and entertain visitors, and Chamilly found it easy to get round the trustful nun. Before long their affair became known and caused a scandal, and Chamilly deserted Sóror Mariana and returned to France. This resulted in Sóror Mariana writing the letters.
There are signs in the fifth letter that Sóror Mariana had begun to conquer her passion. After a life of rigid penance, accompanied by much suffering, she died, aged 83. Sóror Mariana's life story has also been described in the novel by Katherine Vaz
, Mariana, published by Aliform Publishing in 2005.
Portuguese people
The Portuguese are a nation and ethnic group native to the country of Portugal, in the west of the Iberian peninsula of south-west Europe. Their language is Portuguese, and Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion....
nun
Nun
A nun is a woman who has taken vows committing her to live a spiritual life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
, living in the convent of the Poor Ladies (Convento de Nossa Senhora da Conceição) in Beja, Portugal
Beja (Portugal)
Beja is a city in the Beja Municipality in the Alentejo region, Portugal. The municipality has a total area of 1,147.1 km² and a total population of 34,970 inhabitants. The city proper has a population of 21,658....
.
Debate continues as to whether Mariana was the real Portuguese
Portuguese people
The Portuguese are a nation and ethnic group native to the country of Portugal, in the west of the Iberian peninsula of south-west Europe. Their language is Portuguese, and Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion....
author of the Letters of a Portuguese Nun
Letters of a Portuguese Nun
The Letters of a Portuguese Nun , first published anonymously by Claude Barbin in Paris in 1669, is a work believed by most scholars to be epistolary fiction in the form of five letters written by Gabriel-Joseph de La Vergne, comte de Guilleragues , a minor peer, diplomat, secretary to the Prince...
(comprising five letters). Her purported love affair with the French officer Noël Bouton, Marquis de Chamilly and later Marshal of France
Marshal of France
The Marshal of France is a military distinction in contemporary France, not a military rank. It is granted to generals for exceptional achievements...
, has made Beja famous in (mainly Portuguese and French) literary circles.
Some literary scholars consider the letters a fictional work and their authorship is ascribed to Gabriel-Joseph de La Vergne, comte de Guilleragues (1628–1685), although a real nun named Mariana Alcoforado did exist. In her recent book Letters of a Portuguese Nun: Uncovering the Mystery Behind a Seventeenth-Century Forbidden Love (2006), the author Myriam Cyr has attempted to reassert the attribution of the letters to the real Mariana Alcoforado.
For information about authorship and publication of the letters, see "Letters of a Portuguese Nun
Letters of a Portuguese Nun
The Letters of a Portuguese Nun , first published anonymously by Claude Barbin in Paris in 1669, is a work believed by most scholars to be epistolary fiction in the form of five letters written by Gabriel-Joseph de La Vergne, comte de Guilleragues , a minor peer, diplomat, secretary to the Prince...
".
Biography
- Note: the following biography is based in large part on the letters and may contain, for that reason, fictionalized elements.
Beja (Portugal)
Beja is a city in the Beja Municipality in the Alentejo region, Portugal. The municipality has a total area of 1,147.1 km² and a total population of 34,970 inhabitants. The city proper has a population of 21,658....
, daughter of landed proprietor of Alentejo Francisco da Cunha Alcoforado, born at Cortiços, Macedo de Cavaleiros
Macedo de Cavaleiros
Macedo de Cavaleiros is a municipality in northeastern Portugal, in Bragança District.-History:During antiquity, the region was occupied by the Celts, then Romans and finally the Arab forces of the Umayyad Caliphate, who dominated the region until the Christian Reconquista...
, and first wife Leonor Mendes. She had three brothers, Baltasar Vaz Alcoforado, Miguel da Cunha Alcoforado and Francisco da Cunha Alcoforado and two sisters Ana Maria da Cunha Alcoforado, wife of Rui de Melo Lobo Freire, and Maria Peregrina Alcoforado. Beja was the chief garrison town of the province and the principal theatre of the twenty-eight years' war with Spain that followed the Portuguese Revolution of 1640
Portuguese Restoration War
Portuguese Restoration War was the name given by nineteenth-century 'romantic' historians to the war between Portugal and Spain that began with the Portuguese revolution of 1640 and ended with the Treaty of Lisbon . The revolution of 1640 ended the sixty-year period of dual monarchy in Portugal...
. Mariana's widowed father, occupied with administrative and military commissions, placed her in the wealthy convent of the Conception for security and education. He later remarried and had two more daughters, Maria da Conceição Alcoforado and Catarina Alcoforado, and was also made a Knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
of the Order of Christ
Order of Christ (Portugal)
The Military Order of Christ previously the Royal Order of the Knights of Our Lord Jesus Christ was the heritage of the Knights Templar in Portugal, after the suppression of the Templars in 1312...
on December 15, 1647.
She made her profession as a Franciscan nun of the Poor Ladies at sixteen or earlier, without any real vocation, and lived a routine life in that somewhat relaxed house until her twenty-fifth year, when she purportedly met the young French nobleman Noël Bouton. This man, afterwards known as marquis de Chamilly, and marshal of France
Marshal of France
The Marshal of France is a military distinction in contemporary France, not a military rank. It is granted to generals for exceptional achievements...
, was one of the French officers who came to Portugal to serve under the captain, Frederick Schomberg, 1st Duke of Schomberg
Frederick Schomberg, 1st Duke of Schomberg
Friedrich Hermann , 1st Duke of Schomberg , KG , was a marshal of France and a General in the English and Portuguese Army....
, the re-organizer of the Portuguese army, campaigning against the Spanish army in the Alentejo.
During the years 1665-1667 Chamilly spent much of his time in and about Beja, and probably became acquainted with the Alcoforado family through Sóror Mariana's brother, who was a soldier. Custom permitted those in religious orders to receive and entertain visitors, and Chamilly found it easy to get round the trustful nun. Before long their affair became known and caused a scandal, and Chamilly deserted Sóror Mariana and returned to France. This resulted in Sóror Mariana writing the letters.
There are signs in the fifth letter that Sóror Mariana had begun to conquer her passion. After a life of rigid penance, accompanied by much suffering, she died, aged 83. Sóror Mariana's life story has also been described in the novel by Katherine Vaz
Katherine Vaz
Katherine Vaz is an American writer.-Award:*1997: Drue Heinz Literature Prize, -References:...
, Mariana, published by Aliform Publishing in 2005.
Fiction
- The Three Marias: New Portuguese Letters, by Maria Isabel Barreno, Maria Teresa Horta, and Maria Velho da Costa, translated by Donald Ericson, 1973 Doubleday; Novas Cartas Portuguesas original title; ISBN 0-385-01853-3.
- The Love Letters, a novel by Madeleine L'EngleMadeleine L'EngleMadeleine L'Engle was an American writer best known for her young-adult fiction, particularly the Newbery Medal-winning A Wrinkle in Time and its sequels A Wind in the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet, Many Waters, and An Acceptable Time...
, 1966 Farrar, Straus and Giroux, ISBN 0-87788-528-1.